Bristle worms out of control!!!

[whatnot45]

Ok i have a 29 gallon SH tank, and 30 lbs of live rock. I had a bunch of bristle worms about 2 months ago when i decided to cook my rocks due to a hair algea out break. ANy ways the rocks are about done cooking, and I went to take them out of the cooking tank, when I noticed a long worm on the glass. I looked closer, and it was a bristle worm that was 3 INCHES LONG!!! I began to examin the rest of the rock, and there were TONS OF THEM!! They were everywhere. I counted 32 on one face of a medium sized rock! How can I get rid of these guys before i add the rocks back to the seahorse tank?

[Anthony Calfo]

a fav trick of mine for removing macro organisms such as worms, crabs, mantis, etc is to make a solution of magnesium chloride (not sodium chloride) mixed up to the same specific gravity as NSW (say... 1.024ish)

Dip the rocks in this saltwater bath and watch the motile organisms exit rather promtly.

For fish-only use display live rock, it accomplishes the goal of removing most if not all potential problem creatures such as parasitic isopods and mantis (stomatopods), as well as pests like the polychaetes you are hunting in this case.

I heard the trick from a chap at SeaWorld FL who does this to prepare LR for use in their fish only displays.

[whatnot45]

Where can i get magnesium chloride?

[pledosophy]

I have made a mixture of salt water at 1.o40 and had the same effect that Anthony is speaking of. Rid the system of a few hundred bristleworms.

Bristleworms are a challenge in a seahorse setup because many of there predators are not really seahorse safe.

I was extremely lucky in finding a mild mannored 6 line wrasse how feast on the buggers, but am sure one day I will have to remove him. So far so good, it's been about 6 months.

Good Luck, I hate those things !

[whatnot45]

lol i have never seen one get over an inch, but these were huge lol

[whatnot45]

lol i have never seen one get over an inch, but these were huge lol

[graveyardworm]

Anthony, using the method you describe would it be possible to save organisms you wished to and add them to the display?

[pledosophy]

I have seen bristle worms that were over 18" and thicker than 2 cigarettes. I have heard of ones 7' long.

[wjhuie]

Man thats nothing I have some that are 16-18inches long and about as big my finger and some are so small I can barely see them. I get stung by those damn things all the time they hurt a my fingers swell like twice there size.

[wjhuie]

My friends and I call them bristle snakes there so big.

[graveyardworm]

This big worm thing comes up every once in while here's (http://oregonreef.com/sub_worm.htm) a pic that comes up every once in while along with it.

[pledosophy]

Man that guys site is incredible.